Wonderbloom Nature Nursery

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

The manager has clear intent for staff to provide children with an ambitious curriculum, including children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Recently, she has worked with staff to review and improve the organisation of the learning environment. For example, children now have designated playrooms and are more happy, settled and confident being in smaller groups.

The special educational needs coordinator works well with staff to manage and prevent any challenging behaviour. For instance, she creates, reviews and adapts individual learning plans that are shared with staff, parents and other agencies. Staff use the learning plans well to engage children in activities and help them develop the skills they need for the future.

Children develop good physical skills, for instance while learning to balance on low level stepping stones in the garden. Staff use children's enthusiasm during these activities to extend their mathematical development. For instance, they introduce words such as 'on top', 'behind' and 'next to', while using the stepping stones. Children eagerly engage in role play. They develop their imagination, for instance, as they use utensils and saucepans in an outdoor mud kitchen.

What does the early years setting do well and what does it need to do better?

• Staff support all children's language development well. For example, they work effectively with parents to assess children's development in their home languages as well as English. Staff use this information to reduce any gaps in children's development and help them catch up. Children with English as an additional language make good progress. They rapidly learn and use a wide range of vocabulary.
• Staff are positive role models. They have an encouraging approach that inspires and motivates children to learn. For example, they respond to children's interest when they use crayons to combine and create different colours. They support children to make further discoveries, for instance, through mixing different coloured paints.
• Staff support children well to make good progress in all areas of their learning and development, particularly during one to one activities. For instance, they extend children's mathematical development, as they encourage them to count while moving their bodies backwards and forwards using large expandable resistance bands.
• Children are active learners. They confidently and independently explore the good range of indoor and outdoor activities. Staff join in children's play and help them to achieve what they set out to do.
• Managers have oversight of the good quality of children's care and learning. They have clear objectives to continually improve outcomes for children. However, in the short time the nursery has been open, managers have not assured themselves that the curriculum is consistently challenging for all children. There are occasions when some children play repetitively with the same resources.
• Staff work well as a team to help children learn to share the resources. For example, they use sand timers and visual prompts to help children learn to share. Staff consistently and skilfully support children to understand and manage their emotions and behaviour, including children with SEND.
• Staff focus strongly on supporting and meeting children's individual emotional needs. They build positive relationships with children and give them lots of reassurance. Children develop good social skills and form close friendships. Staff support children to develop good independence. For example, children learn to put on their coats and waterproof boots before playing outdoors.
• Staff establish positive communication with parents. Parents spoken to during the inspection say they are very happy with their children's care and learning. For instance, that the staff are superb, and have great experience of working with children with special educational needs. Parents also say that staff go above and beyond to support them with meeting their children's individual needs.
• Staff have a good understanding of children's individual care needs. For example, they have a comprehensive knowledge of how to respond if a child needs medical attention. They work well as a team to share this responsibility, administer prescribed medication and support children's good health.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• support all staff to fully understand and implement the intended curriculum so that children make even better progress
• strengthen how managers assure themselves that the curriculum learning intentions are met, and it is sufficiently challenging for all the children.